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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23407897">Paradise Lost</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/GoreyxValentine/pseuds/GoreyxValentine'>GoreyxValentine</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Call of Duty (Video Games)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Blood and Gore, Dimension Travel, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Murder, Unrequited Crush, Unrequited Love</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-03-31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-03-31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 07:34:07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,221</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23407897</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/GoreyxValentine/pseuds/GoreyxValentine</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Edward Richtofen has always been an optimistic person, trying to make his best out of a bad situation with his own abstract quirks and knowledge, but when his discovery of a new Element causes a domino effect of unwanted catastrophes, science-defying attributes and universal collapse, he doesn't know how much longer his mind and body can take.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>"Tank" Dempsey/Edward Richtofen</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>21</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Paradise Lost</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Northern France—this place was ground zero of the world's untimely demise. With a world war raging on with bullets and gunfire, the Germans had released a second wave of trouble—the undead. With this unneeded addition and the other major powers trying to figure out what the Germans were up to, three other unfortunate souls must face the truth and mend a broken rift. But their journey may last longer then just these muddy trenches and flooded skies.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This chapter's song is by Chase Atlantic, one of my favorite bands! Give it a listen by looking up "Uncomfortable by Chase Atlantic"</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>In the midst of finishing the dissection of his former friend to save his life, Edward Richtofen was met with only consternation. His hands were splattered with blood, a bonesaw stained with the same dark iron captured in his grip. His mind went fuzzy, not expecting three men from three differing nationalities to be pointing pistols at him like he was the cause of their combined anguish. Of course, with this sudden standstill between the four of them, the whirring of one of the three titan-like robots decided to misplace it's foot right on top of the roof, causing all of them to get down to the ground and cover their heads as rubble collapsed to the floor. </p><p>This was where everything started. </p><p>Before this series of unfortunate events, Doctor Edward Richtofen and Doctor Ludwig Maxis were ordinary scientists under the rule of Germany. Their main goal was to improve the chances of winning this war with the least amount of casualties, so to speak, discovering a new Element among their midst and creating generators to filter and produce a liquid formula for them to utilize. This discovery had only been made due to a journal Doctor Edward Richtofen had discovered after becoming one with Group 935. Unfortunately, this massive discovery did not pardon the war going on behind all of this, fighter planes still soaring the skies and blimps hovering above to provide support to their air battles going on. In the distance, bullets and anti aircraft missiles shot up into the sky, covering their developments far away from society's reach. Along with these, the Germans had built exceptional robots that patrolled the grounds, the size of skyscrapers that moved by itself on constant patrol. Throughout their time here, Doctor Richtofen had increasingly become worried for the other due to his sudden infatuation with a voice in his head and focusing everything onto the staffs and the voice's demands to set her free, even going as far to say it was his daughter. He doesn't know what to believe, but he's working with him just in case anything bad ever did happen. </p><p>And he was absolutely right about that, for their discovery would cause a war and powers far beyond their comprehension, all in the silence and their increased secrecy. </p><p>With their secrecy came questions, questions that other nations desperately needed (more like wanted really) answers to. Without the others knowing of this, the Japanese, the Americans and the Russians sent out a soldier to seek knowledge of this sudden silent treatment. They wanted to know everything, because deep down, Germany could turn this whole war around if they played their cards decisively. For each soldier, their first challenge was getting past all of the gunfire and the tanks roaming around on the battlefield. Next, were the zombies, something they immediately never thought to come face to face with, but an obstacle no doubt. Each of them traversed the muddy trenches looking for these doctors on their own terms, murdering the undead and sending them back to their graves in the ground. </p><p>Which lead up to now, the four of them fighting for their lives while the German explained the troubles and causes of these sickening effects. It would start off agonizingly slow, all of their worlds being flipped upside down as this whole situation started. Not long after the collapse of the roof, the unsettling cries and shrieks of the undead rang in their ears as they're immediately forced to proceed and heed the German's words. Unfortunately, they were going to have to trust the man they had been set to interrogate since he was the only one who knew his way around these grounds, following his orders in order for their continued survival. The generators were the first things he needed to explain after the zombie problem, trying to compress his words to a "normal" sense so these three newcomers could  actually comprehend his words. </p><p>It wasn't that long later when he began to dig pieces of the staffs his former friend had been making from the ground as the sky wept frozen delights, the snow touching his pale skin as he didn't even bother to shudder. He was used to this bitter weather, going from snow to rain to clear skies only to cycle itself back again and again. France's weather seemed so odd during times like this, but he isn't a meteorologist so he couldn't really tell or complain. As his boots trudged through the mud, he finally opened up the mound with a simple touch, the pieces receding away from him as he cocked his head to the side. Everything was so weird now, but there was no time to dwindle on things like this. </p><p>Noticing the machine they had found when they arrived on this site used to upgrade their weapons, it seemed to be in pieces and came to a conclusion that it needed all the generators for it to rebuild itself like it had once before. Rushing downstairs, he placed the Gramophone and placed the music underneath it's needle, letting the song play and watching the floor shift and move before it opened a secret pathway. He believes this is the work of Maxis, that fellow, always up to something with his brilliance and research. To be honest, he had only clued in on these staffs due to some papers he'd found after Maxis' untimely demise (in his handwriting and sketching), reading the smooth German writing with ease. </p><p>There were four staffs, each holding the power of an element; Ice, Fire, Lighting and Wind. The processes to acquiring the pieces were drastically different, only the same for obtaining the elemental shards through the songs of their corresponding elements. Garnering these instructions, he quickly assigned each of the men a staff to acquire, warning them of the dangers and advantages of obtaining these staffs. Sending them off, he'd given the Ice staff pieces of the Japanese warrior as he set out to obtain the Wind pieces from the giant robots that he remembers naming. </p><p>Hearing the whining of heavy mental creaking and stomping, his feet sloshed in deep mud as he rushed over to the smoldering rotting church to catch Freya before she finished her round, shooting the bottom of her foot with his MP40 and being engulfed in bright yellow light. Feeling himself be shot up into the head of the metal giant, exiting from the pressure shoot and obtaining the piece. He'd been up here many times, the beautiful works of machinery a fine addition to the site's security. Marveling in its work for only short moments, he decided he shouldn't dwell up here too long since there was work to be done. </p><p>Stepping back, let himself be ejected from the machine as he fell to the muddy ground with a thud, cushioning his fall with his hands and elbows as his head throbbed. He'd have to get used to this, he knows, either using their machine capabilities to escape a sticky situation and obtain the last two pieces necessary to craft the Wind staff he'd used for the rest of the duration of their time here. Grunting and holding his head, he notices the American soldier (he can tell by the outfit) walking to him with a soft look on his face. </p><p>"Are you alright? You took quite a fall there."</p><p>He wobbles to his feet as the other man helps him up, a soft little blush of embarrassment on his face as he thanks him quietly. </p><p>"Yes, thank you. I'm sorry I haven't been able to properly introduce myself. My name is Doctor Edward Richtofen, one of the leading scientists here—as you can probably already tell—that worked here. And you, if I may ask?"</p><p>He's being genuinely nice, finding that good mannerisms do genuinely get good outcomes. It's a saying he sticks to greatly when he can. </p><p>"The name's Tank. Tank Dempsey. Either name is fine."</p><p>It was a simple way to meet, an exchange of worry to an exchange of names, wishing each other good luck as they continued with their work on obtaining the staffs. Even so, he yearned for care like this, even if it was so simple. He pushed that back, he had no time to dwindle on things like this. He must focus. By now, Samantha has already pleaded with all of them, Edward paying no mind to her words as he hissed under his breath—she had been playing this game since her sudden appearance in his former friend's head, having the ability to speak out loud to all of them while saying she was in a mythical realm called Agartha. He didn't believe this, he didn't want to believe this, but her words had consumed her "father" into madness, constructing these staffs in hopes to regain his "daughter" back only to fail and end up on his surgery table to save his life (in a way). Sighing deeply, he proceeded with collecting the other drone pieces to have Maxis inhabit for the time being.</p><p>While doing so, he continued to also locate the parts of a makeshift shield, assembling the pieces to click and lock in place to create such a wonderful piece of equipment. Settling one onto his back, he proceeded back to the church to assemble the drone, successfully and carefully making sure everything worked before testing it out and hearing Maxis' voice for the first time since his death. To be honest, he was relieved in some way at the resurrection of his former friend, promising to make good use of him as he continued on. </p><p>Through waves and waves of the undead, he kept the leather bound journal of notes to his chest and he continued to read the upgrading process of these already helpful staffs, including Maxis' way of supposedly saving Samantha from Agartha. Though, as he duly remembered around his now allies, nothing was ever easy during times like this. The sounds of sirens made him perk up as he yelled for their attention, warning them of a Panzersoldat that had just entered their airspace and now was on the ground ready to attack. They were able to take it out relatively quickly due to their staffs as they swept through this wave, Takeo (the Japanese warrior) offering to keep the crawler as he explained their next steps. </p><p>Having some time to themselves, they introduced themselves to one another, this one of their only times to get to know each other since they had no idea how long this would last, Edward finding it best to explain the situation in more depth then before so they could understand what was happening at the moment. He was going off of notes, intuition and knowledge, hoping that they would understand and ask if things needed to be clarified. He answered all of them as best he could before they split up once more, proceeding with the mission of upgrading and fulfilling their jobs as a whole. He even had time to talk with Dempsey, who he had grown quite fond of for their hours (or days, he hasn't kept track since time seemed irrelevant here since none of them had grown a lick of tired) together, speaking of calmer things to get his mind off of the undead, even if it was for only a little. </p><p>He was hoping that after all this that there would be peace, a way to calm down from all this violence, all this pain and suffrage. But deep down, he knows that once something this big starts, it will have to take something a lot bigger to end it. </p><p>Even so, he pushed forward, helping them upgrade their staffs if they needed any type of assistance and writing down the list or objectives that looked quite like a riddle of sorts when read without context. It took a lot of effort to push through the hordes and the Panzersoldats and successfully dodging the giants thundering feet as they stomped by every now and then. Of course, their last job after going through all that hassle was to proceed back to the place they had dubbed "The Crazy Place" and release Maxis to do what he needed to, as he put it. </p><p>Heading to the Crazy Place was a pain in the ass, the small one way entrance/exit perfect for a zombie ambush as he played the Gramophone to build the odd teleporter, zombies crawling from the walls and running down the tunnel as they shot their staffs at them. Once the portal opened, they rushed inside to get some type of space as Edward told them to cover him. Running to the center of the room as the walls of 115 shifted, he pulled Maxis from the leather patch on his hip and held him out. </p><p>"It's time, Maxis. Let's fix this."</p><p>There was something he'd read in the journal he'd found long ago, a contribution to finding this Element and accidentally wreaking havoc upon this land. Something he hadn't bothered to tell the others. </p><p>With a blue light, they were all engulfed in its blissful peace. </p><p>But when the light left and the thanks of the little girl rang through their ears, something was missing. </p><p>Edward was gone.</p>
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